Psychology Department

What is Psychology? ...and what do psychologists do?

Psychology is a diverse field that encompasses the study of mind, brain, human and animal behavior, and social interactions. To answer these questions, psychologists engage in experimentation and case studies of both normal and abnormal populations. The results of this work is applied in a variety of fields such as

education

business (e.g. human resources, marketing, management, etc.)

law

medicine & health sciences

and more!

Furthermore,clinical psychology concerns itself with psychotherapy and the treatment of psychological disorders. Psychology is distinct from psychiatry which is a field of medicine concerned primarily with mental illness. Here is a list of some specialty areas of psychology .

Psychology is an excellent skills-based major for any career. Traditional careers in psychology usually require some graduate level training (Master's or Doctoral degree) and include clinical work (psychotherapy, clinical social work, counseling, school psychology, psychological assessment/testing, etc.) and experimental work (academic, social, and industry research) among others. Bachelor's degrees in psychology prepare students well for graduate programs in education and law and careers in many areas: management, advertising, human resources, psychological testing, and some types of social work/social services work, among others.

This web site is maintained by Dr. Laurence Nolan, Department of Psychology, Wagner College, Staten Island, New York 10301.